I Know
by fluttercullen89
Summary: Go stick your head in a hole or something and LEAVE ME ALONE!" "She wants me."
1. Chapter 1

**Seven different times James told Lily he loved her. I pretty much stole Lily's response from Star Wars... but so what? I love Star Wars, and I love Lily and James. Enjoy!**

_**One**_

"I don't think this is such a good idea, James. Do you remember what happened when you dipped her hair in ink the other day? I don't think she's pleased with you."

"Oh, Remus! She's probably forgotten all about that by now! I'm sure she feels the same way about me!"

Somehow Remus Lupin didn't think his mate was in possession of his sanity anymore.

**

"Oy! Evans!"

Groaning and mustering up her most polite smile, Lily Evans turned around to face the bane of her existence. As he made his way up to her, Severus attempted to pull her in the opposite direction.

"Come on, Lily. Let's just walk away from that slime. We have more important things to do."

"Sev, can't I at least _try _for some peace with my housemates? I know he's a scoundrel, but it's worth a shot, right?"

"Can I help you, Potter?"

Seeing her forced smile as something _completely_ different and disregarding the crowd that had gathered, James screwed up his courage, planted his feet firmly, and blurted out "I LOVE YOU!"

Holding Severus back from the kill, Lily flared her nostrils in agitation.

"You _love _me?"

"Yes."

"You... love me."

"That's what I said, right?"

"So dipping my hair in ink the other day was a sign of affection?"

James sensed this wasn't going to go as planned. "Well I can explain that..."

Taking a step closer, Lily continued. "And the day before that when you threw mashed potatoes at my face... that was really you saying that you'd go to the end of the world for me?"

"I meant to hit Sirius that time."

"He was right next to you! I was at least halfway down the table from you, Potter!"

Since Lily was currently pursuing him in a very _non_-loving manner, James thought it wise to back up a few paces.

"James Potter! I never knew you were _this_ immature, this _obtuse_! I mean, we've known each other for all of _three days_ and you pull a stunt like this?!? I'm sure I just can't_ wait_ for the next six years! Go stick your head in a hole or something and LEAVE ME ALONE!"

With that, Lily stalked off, tugging Severus Snape behind her.

James remained stationary for quite some time. In fact, if he didn't blink every now and then, Remus and Sirius would have been worried for his life.

After thinking it over quite a bit, James deducted that "She wants me."

**I already have a few more done... but I wanted to see what you thought first. It's going to have seven chapters total!**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Two**_

James counted himself immensely lucky that she had decided to stay at Hogwarts during the Christmas holidays. Sirius was forced to return to Grimmauld Place by his _charming _mother. Remus and his parents went on a well-deserved vacation. And as far as he could tell, Peter was at home with his over-bearing mother.

Yes, James was alone; Lily was also alone.

With no real distractions in sight, James had hatched a scheme to win the affections of the lovely Lily.

He thought he loved her last year, when she _purposely _elbowed him in the eye. Or when she got a top Potion mark and kept it quiet. Or maybe when she punched that Slytherin git Avery for calling her a Mudblood.

Whichever reason it really was, he knew nothing could compare with what he felt now...

Making sure his hair was sufficiently windspwept and awesome, he made his way into the common room, where he was not surprised to find Lily Evans engrossed in a rather large book.

Sitting down on the couch next to her, James cleared his throat and started talking.

"Evans, I know you won't believe this, but I love you deeply. Your red hair is... well, really red. And your eyes are really green and sometimes shiny... I mean... your red hair is shiny and your eyes are green... and ummm... I LOVE YOU1" Somehow that didn't come out as well as James had rehearsed it in the dormitory.

"I know," Lily replied without lifting her eyes from the page.

"Wait... you know?"

"Yes. I know my hair is red, I know my eyes are green." She slammed the book shut. "And I also happen to know that you're a great prat. Can't you leave me in peace for _one minute_?" She angrily blew a piece of fiery hair off her face at this. "I know it must be hard for you to understand, since your brain is so small, but I'm not going to fall for another one of your tricks! I'm just sick of it. So please, Potter. _Please_ leave me be!"

And as she stormed up to her dormitory, James couldn't help but feel a but disheartened.

**I hope I'm showing a little bit of change as James gets older... even if it's for the worse. Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Three**_

"I'm going to give it another go!"

This sudden declaration was met by groans of protest all around the dorm.

"James, she's rejected you _every single time_ you've talked to her about it. Why bother when you _know_ she's never going to give in?" Sirius was getting tired of the constant discussions about Lily Evans. "It's always Evans, Evans, Evans!"

"Come on, you three! I'm positive she'll say yes this time."

"Prongs – I'm winning here. Don't make me lose my concentration!"

"Sirius... one of your eyebrows is singed off. I wouldn't call that winning," quipped Remus from behind his hand of Exploding Snap.

"What can in hurt? The worst she can do is say no again. And plus, I need all the moral support I can get." Noticing that this course of action was getting him nowhere, James smirked winningly. "Besides, if you decide _not_ to come with me, I will be forced to reveal..." He moved his eyes from side to side shiftily. "_The Incident_!"

The rest of the Marauders shot out of their seats faster than you could say _never tickle a sleeping dragon._

"You wouldn't DARE!"

"You don't have the guts!"

"Please for the love of all that's holy NOOOOO!"

Smelling victory, James Potter motioned towards the door and headed out, hearing three pairs of feet trailing behind.

James may have appeared calm, collected, and maybe a bit arrogant to his friends at the moment, but in truth he was about to fall apart. At least she used to give him a chance to greet her! But after his last attempt, she had taken to rejecting him before he even got the chance to say "hello."

He was determined to hold a conversation with her, _alone_, before she rejected him this time. Unfortunately, Lily was almost never alone. She could always be found with a gaggle of Gryffindor girls or with one Slytherin... and a greasy one, at that.

But if James had been a bit more observant, he would have recognized the increasing absence of Severus Snape in Lily's life. And if he'd been but a bit older than thirteen, he would have been more concerned for Lily's happiness.

Because in truth, Lily's best friend was going down a darker path than she could imagine. But every time James saw Lily and Snape studying together theses days, all he could think about was how it should be _him_ at her side rather than a git like Snape.

So when James and his reluctant posse made it to the library (she was usually there in the potions section), he was more than happy to see she was completely alone. There were at least four tomes of varying sizes scattered on the small table, cluttering Lily's work space as usual. James had recently discovered that for someone who was supposedly a neat freak, Lily was extremely messy.

The knowledge that absolutely nothing about Lily was as it appeared was one of the best things about her.

"There she is, Prongs. Just don't blurt it out this time."

"Just start off with something she likes to talk about."

"You're going to be fine, James."

Despite hearing their advice at exactly the same time, James miraculously understood every word.

Walking forward slowly and trying not to appear nervous, he began a small pep talk in his head. _She likes treacle tart... you could tell her how it was great she won that eating contest with McKinnon. No, she'll think you're calling her a pig... Don't talk about her hair this time. It didn't go well last year. Hi, Lily! You look... no. BAH!_

"Are you going to just stand there staring at me or did you want to take a seat," Lily queried without looking up from her parchment.

Glancing around quickly, James blurted "how did you know I was here?"

"Well," she began as she dropped her quill, "first of all, I can smell scorched hair. Tell Black from me that I know a _great_ hair potion for thin or no hair at all. Second, I can hear Remus pulling random books of the shelf. Peter's snoring gave him away right off the bat, and frankly Potter, your feet _reek_!"

Silently resolving never to trust Sirius with his laundry during Quidditch ever again, James replied with, "well... I'll just sit then, shall I?"

Lily just smirked and went back to her scribbling.

Remembering his mission, James cleared his throat. "So... did you enjoy the Hogsmeade weekend?"

"You mean without you?" She moved her eyes to his face, lifting a corner of her mouth slightly.

"I... that is, uh. That's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean, Potter?"

"Well, for starters... what was your favorite part?"

Lily completely discarded her quill and crossed her arms over her chest, tilting her head in curiosity. "Are you serious? James Potter – you have only _ever_ begun our conversations with a proposal or a declaration of love. Are you telling me you're trying to actually talk to me?"

Gulping down the bit of vomit that was rising in his throat, he nodded.

After narrowing her eyes at him for a bit, Lily conceded. "If you must know, my favorite bit was Zonko's. My dad loves the stuff I send home from that place." She leaned forward conspiritorially. "He's a bit of a child at heart." She stretched her arms behind her head. "And I just loved being able to stock up on a few Chocolate Frogs at Honeydukes. What about you?"

"Oh, the same! Zonko's is great! Sirius and I sometimes prefer the more subtle Hiccup Sweets that they carry. Dungbombs do have their advantages, though..." James trailed off and just looked at Lily. "Your eyes really are pretty, Evans."

Much to his chagrin, Lily sighed and began packing her things. "Thank you, Potter. It's been... nice. See you later."

As he watched her sling her bag over her shoulder and walk away, he muttered "I love you, Lily Evans."

And _had_ James been more observant for a thirteen year-old boy, he would have seen her look back at him and flush the lightest shade of pink.

**I'm so sorry for the wait! My computer shut down while I was working on this chapter and it didn't save ANYTHING! So this took me a while. Thanks for sticking with this story! Inspirational music for this chapter was as follows:**

**Lullaby – The Remus Lupins**

**Make You Feel My Love – Adele**

**Iris – The Goo Goo Dolls**

**Judy Collins!!!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Dude. I have not updated in QUITE some time. Oopsies! I'm back in school and I've focused ALL of my time on classes and practicing and exams and such. But here's a little something for you since I'm on Christmas break. :D**

_**Four**_

_ This probably isn't going to turn out very well, _James Potter thought to himself as he slowly made his way to a certain redhead by the lake.

_First attempt: she yelled at me and left with Snape. _He momentarily lost his train of thought as Moony clapped him on the shoulder in encouragement.

_Second attempt: she rendered me speechless in the worst way possible. _James could feel his feet and his heart speed up just a bit.

_Third attempt: I manage to muck up our only semi-normal conversation by blurting out my love for her eyes. Her completely gorgeous and perfect eyes that… NO! James, this is _not _the time to lose focus! Great. Now I'm talking to myself. In my head._

To any normal and sane passer-by, James Potter appeared every bit suave and cool as always. Only his closest friends were aware of his nerves – because, you see, this had become an annual occurrence:

James was going to confess his undying love for Lily Evans.

In the beginning, he had mostly gone for the flamboyant approach. At the tender age of eleven, James had somehow decided that teasing Lily was the same thing as showing his affection. This proved to be the height of folly.

Eventually he moved on to a more conservative approach – get her alone first. This seemed to work a bit better, as it left less room for bruises to his ego. She merely huffed and walked away instead of screaming at him for everyone to hear.

Purely for the sake of experimentation, James had decided to try last year's approach again. The only problem was finding a topic of conversation that would help his cause. And as he peeked over her shoulder at her Transfiguration homework, he was blessed with an idea.

"There's a better way to do that problem, Evans."

With barely a glance upward to see his face, said Evans replied with "sod off, Potter."

He could tell she was probably raising her eyebrow in irritation. There was only one chance for him to get this right. So he settled quite gently next to her, slinging his bag next to hers and pulling out his own work that he'd completed only hours before.

"No, I mean it. I just finished it today. Here, let me show you." He gently pulled her parchment from her hands and replaced it with his own. "Instead of moving your wrist like _this_-" he flicked it upwards quickly "-try this movement instead." At this he took her wrist and moved it down and then up.

"Potter, I'm doing just fine on my own. I – I appreciate your help and everything, but I think my way is right."

James smiled softly. "Just try it, Lily."

Although she was surprised at hearing him call her by her first name, Lily still looked a bit skeptical.

Ruffling his hair a bit in thought, James breathed a bit loudly before raising his finger in victory. "I know! You like to paint a bit, right?"

"…How did you…"

"It's a bit like using a paintbrush. Just think of this spell as a painting! You want to stroke the brush down before you go up!"

Lily sighed, blowing a piece of hair out of her face in the process. "Well, I don't see what it could hurt…" She held out her wand, muttered the incantation, and flicked her wrist as James had instructed.

She let out a gasp as the teacup she'd been practicing with suddenly changed into the desired jam jar. "I – I did it! I've been working on this for three hours!" She turned to look directly at James for the first time. "Thank – thank you, Potter!"

James just beamed at her. "Anytime, Evans."

She stifled a giggle as she continued looking at him. "Erm – have you –" she cleared her throat pointedly. "Did you get a new pair of glasses?"

"No…" James looked at her curiously. "Why do you ask?"

She coughed again. "Well, it's just that your glasses are a bit… pinker… than the last time I saw you."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh THAT. For a minute there I thought I'd gone bald!"

"Wait… what?"

He chuckled heartily and grinned. "Sirius beat me in wizard's chess and this was his prize. Honestly, I don't think he was thinking properly. I would have come up with something MUCH more embarrassing! Like, oh I dunno, charming Moaning Myrtle and escorting her around the castle for a day."

To James' delighted surprise, Lily began laughing along with him, her emerald eyes crinkling at the corners in a way that was not unpleasant to look at.

As their laughter died down a bit, Lily began gathering her things. "I'm terribly sorry to do this, but my four-poster has been calling to me since lunch. I appreciate the help, Potter."

Before James could stop his traitor mouth, his original purpose of finding her came screaming back to him. "Evans, there's something I need to tell you. I – I…" he gulped. "I know you don't believe me, but…"

"Potter, just… don't." She sighed and shifted her bag in her arms. "We've had a perfectly good conversation today. And I rather like thinking that we could be friends very easily if you would just stop professing your love for me." She looked right into his eyes, ignoring his pink glasses with great difficulty. "James, I know what you're going to say. And I'm asking you _not _to say it.'

James heard the word _friends_ and couldn't help what he said next. "This is because of Snape, isn't it?"

Her eyes darkened dangerously as she frowned. "What has my friendship with Severus got to do with my friendship with you?"

_Oh, well. It can't get any worse if I go on. _"Oh come on, Evans! He's mad for you! And when I say mad, that's exactly what I mean! Bonkers! He's a lunatic – and not just because he follows you around when you aren't looking! Lily, he's – he's consorting with _Death Eaters!"_

As Lily Evans slapped his face, James tried to remember that just a minute previously she had been laughing with him.

"I know you don't like Severus. You never have. And I really don't know why. But James Potter… he was my first friend in this world." She regarded him coldly. "He introduced me to magic and he has been a true friend to me ever since. So when I hear you accuse my best friend of hanging out with the people that are _hunting _my kind, hunting muggle-borns, I can't help but think that you are a liar." At this point there were tears in her eyes. "About _everything_."

Once again, Lily Evans left James speechless as angry tears spilled down her cheeks. She shifted her bag once more and stormed off, leaving a shocked Marauder by the side of the lake.

**And there we are! I had the crazy idea while I was writing this that James is the person who tipped Lily off about Snape's company. I hope you enjoyed an update!**


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